[Police Vehicle. Photo Credit to Unsplash]

On January 7th, Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old black motorist, was violently harassed by five black Memphis police officers after being pulled over and died in a nearby hospital three days later. 

Nichols had been riding a motorcycle around 8:30 p.m. and was pulled over for alleged reckless driving. 

The police report stated that he fled the scene on foot, which led to the officers taking him into custody through violence. 

Five former Memphis police officers have been prosecuted and charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault, and aggravated kidnapping. 

The police stated that Nichols was taken to a hospital after the confrontation due to his “shortness of breath” and “physical pains.” 

The five officers charged with Nichols’ murder were Demetrius Haley, Desmond Mills, Emmitt Martin, Justin Smith, and Tadarrius Bean; All five men were fired from the Memphis police department. 

Unlike other previous police brutality, such as with George Floyd, all the officers involved were men of color, emphasizing the police department itself instead of racism. 

Later, the medical analysis revealed that Nichols had a broken neck and had gone into cardiac arrest. 

Jeffrey You, a Black Lives Matter(BLM) supporter, said, “I can’t believe that such a show of violence could come from the police. It is truly unfortunate to see such a young man suffer for needless reasons.” 

Nichols was a skateboarder and amateur photographer who had a four-year-old son. 

He worked at FedEx with his stepfather, and they often returned home for dinner with Nichols’ mother. 

Nichols had been heading towards his mother’s house, less than 10 miles away. 

The video footage of the incident revealed that while being harassed, he repeatedly screamed for his mother. 

A human rights supporter, Grace Lee, said, “I can’t imagine what his family must be going through, especially because he had a son. When I heard his screams for his mother in the video, it broke my heart.” 

Across the country, sympathizers and human rights activists are protesting for the end of police brutality and the unjust death of Tyre Nichols. 

Nichols’ family has also come out to discuss this issue publicly.

Andrew Shin, a US citizen, said, “This tragedy shines light into the issue of police brutality like no other incident. It indicates that the police department must enact change to prevent such measures of misuse of violence in the future.”

Further research reveals that the five officers involved were a part of a police unit called “the Scorpion.” 

The group consisted of forty officers and mostly drove in unmarked vehicles to regulate street crime. 

The head of the Memphis police has announced that this police unit will immediately be disbanded. 

The department has also promised to prevent another case of police brutality. 

Eddie Chu, an advocate for human rights, said, “Though the Memphis police department is taking action in light of this recent event, I think the issue of police brutality is a complicated problem that will require a change in not only the police department but in people.”